Chicagoans and Slate readers are invited to join top entrepreneurs for a lively discussion about how individuals can invent new career opportunities for themselves in today's economy. This live, free, open-to-the-public event will take place on January 11, at The Murphy Auditorium, (50 E. Erie Street, Chicago, IL 60611), from 6 to 9 p.m. and is part of The Hive, a Slate enterprise that harnesses the collective intelligence of Slate readers to solve some of society's biggest challenges. The Hive, "Invent Your Future," is sponsored exclusively by The Responsibility Project by Liberty Mutual and focuses on one of the most urgent questions of our time: How can our society--in the classroom and beyond--help people succeed in today's self-starter environment.

The following entrepreneurs will speak at "Invent Your Future" in Chicago:

  • Stephanie Izard, chef and co-owner of The Girl and the Goat and winner of Bravo's Top Chef Season Four
  • Kevin Willer, co-founder of Google's Chicago office and president & CEO of the Chicago Entrepreneurial Center
  • Dominique Raccah, CEO and publisher of Sourcebooks, Inc.
  • Sherman Wright, co-founder and managing partner of Commonground Marketing

David Plotz, editor of Slate, will moderate the panel.

"In this Slate Hive, as in all Slate Hives, we've set out to solve a problem," said David Plotz, editor of Slate. "For 'Invent Your Future' we're looking to curate the best advice for taking full ownership of your career and we couldn't be more thrilled to have these entrepreneurial superstars joining the conversation and sharing their stories."

"We're excited to be part of the 'Invent your Future' event to help spark a conversation about entrepreneurship and responsibly creating career opportunities in our communities," said Paul Alexander, senior vice president of communication, Liberty Mutual Group. "We hope Chicagoans are inspired by the panel discussion and how these entrepreneurs built successful local businesses."

"Invent Your Future" kicked off in mid-October with an introduction and call to action by Plotz. Since then, readers have written in with their best advice for reinventing a career, the Slate audience has voted on their favorite submissions and Slate has spotlighted the ten best reader ideas for starting a business or reviving a career.

"Invent Your Future" live, is open to the public and free of charge. Those interested in attending should RSVP via www.slate.com/inventyourfuture.

For more information about "Invent Your Future," The Hive and to view the most popular Slate reader entries to-date for how to best start your own business and take charge of your future, please visit http://hive.slate.com/hive/invent-your-future.

About Slate and The Slate Group

Slate is a daily magazine on the Web that offers analysis and commentary about news, politics, culture, business, law, and technology. Slate's strong editorial voice and witty take on current events have been recognized with numerous awards, including the National Magazine Award for General Excellence Online and the Missouri Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism. Reaching over eight million unique visitors per month, Slate is the centerpiece of the Slate Group, an online publishing subsidiary of the Washington Post Co. that also publishes The Root, and Foreign Policy. (NYSE:WPO)

About The Responsibility Project

The Responsibility Project, created by Liberty Mutual, is an organic evolution of the company's advertising campaign that has showcased personal acts of responsibility and daily examples of ordinary people making the decision to do considerate things for strangers. These ads featured the tagline, "Responsibility. What's your policy?" Through The Responsibility Project, Liberty Mutual is using entertaining content, including independently produced short films, blogs, articles, advertising and television programming, as catalysts for examining the decisions that confront people trying to "do the right thing."

The Responsibility Project's online community launched in the beginning of 2008, and to date there have been more than 25 million unique visitors to the site. Individuals can participate in online conversations about personal responsibility and watch and discuss live-action and animated short films at The Responsibility Project website and online community at www.ResponsibilityProject.com.

Slate
Jocelyn Nubel, 646-495-4001
Jocelyn@alissaneilpr.com